520 Chess Players Take Part in JAPFA Chess Festival 2026

RRI.CO.ID, Jakarta - The JAPFA Chess Festival 2026 has drawn 520 players from five countries and Indonesia's 23 provinces to Jakarta’s Multipurpose Building, Senayan, where they will compete from September 1–6 for a prize pool of IDR 298.9 million (USD 16,780).

The JAPFA Chess Festival 2026 features a wide range of categories across age groups and skill levels, including senior, women’s, veteran, junior, and team competitions.

Tournament Chairman Henry Hendratno highlighted the international duels on display, notably Indonesia’s International Master (IM) Satria Duta facing Vietnam’s IM Khuong Dau.

In the women’s division, WIM Laysa Latifah of Indonesia takes on Kazakhstan’s WGM Xeniya Balabayeva in what is billed as the festival’s main match.

“Not only in football, but in chess too, Vietnam is our toughest rival in ASEAN. We must admit that,” Hendratno told rri.co.id on Tuesday, September 1, 2026.

PT JAPFA Comfeed Indonesia’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Rachmat Indrajaya, reaffirmed the company’s commitment to advancing chess in Indonesia, citing 26 years of partnership with the Indonesian Chess Association (Percasi).

“We are delighted to host the 16th JAPFA Chess Festival together with Percasi. Our hope is that chess will become more widely known and loved by the public,” he said.

Rachmat noted the growing enthusiasm for the sport, pointing to young players with strong ratings. “We saw a 15-year-old with a high Elo rating today; that shows the passion among the younger generation,” he added.

Echoing this sentiment, Percasi Deputy Chairman Insp. Gen. Pol. Ahmad Ramadhan expressed appreciation for the festival’s success and stressed the importance of supporting local players.

“This is already the 16th JAPFA Chess Festival. As I mentioned in my remarks, we hope JAPFA can continue supporting chess at the local level, since the company also has a presence in the regions,” he said. (Diffa Sephiawardhani)